Grid stop



Jan. 22, 1957 s. J. GARTN ER 2,778,969

GRID STOP Filed Dec. 6, 1954 INVENTOR STANLEY J. GARTNER ATTORNEY United States Patent GRID sror Stanley J. Gartner, Emporium, Pa., assignor to Sylvania Electric Products Inc., a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 6, 1954, Seriai No. 473,242

3 Claims. (Cl. 313-292) This invention relates to electrode mounting means and in particular to the means for locating in position an electrode with respect to an insulating spacing wafer.

In electron tube manufacture there is often employed a pair of spacing wafers, as of mica, suitably perforated to support between them the various electrodes of the electron tube and to position them against sliding movement with respect to the wafers. This is effected in various ways, as by bending the ends of the electrode elements over the wafer, deforming the ends of the electrodes by pinching and spreading the ends or by welding to an electrode end a suitable stop engaging the wafer. This invention relates to the last class of positioning means.

It is an object of the invention to make this stop of springy material and to so attach it to the insulating wafer as to give a degree of springy clenching of the wafer.

It is a further object of the invention to provide for a single thickness of material of the stop to be welded to the electrode supported by the wafer in order to insure ease in welding of the stop to the electrode and to obtain a good joint.

As illustrative of my invention, the stop has been shown as applied to a grid and to an upper insulating wafer, which may be of mica. It is obvious that the stop may be used equally as well on a lower insulating wafer and be applied to other elements than grids.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a view showing how a grid may be supported from an insulating wafer by the stop of my invention, the insulating wafer being shown in section.

Fig. 2 is a view of the stop prior to association with the insulating wafer.

Referring to the drawings in greater detail, at there is indicated a flat strap of metallic material. This strap is bent into the form of a hairpin as shown in Fig. 2, the pin having one leg 12 longer than the other leg 14. Also the bight of the hairpin is provided with a bowed or concave portion as shown at 16. The strap has a degree of resiliency so that the bowed portion has a tendency to maintain its shape.

The strap is inserted through openings 18 and 20 in insulating wafer 22 and the end 14 is curled around, as shown at 23, to engage the mica in order to firmly hold the strap in place. In this operation the bowed portion engages the face of the mica and is slightly flattened out thus effecting tight clenching of the wafer by the strap between the curled end 23 and the slightly flattened por- 2,778,969 Patented Jan. 22, 1957 "ice tion 16. The flatness and springiness of the strap prevents wobble or looseness of the connection between strap and mica. For purposes of exemplification only, the strap is illustrated as holding a grid 24 in position relative to the mica. The grid has side rods 26, one of the rods passing through the hole 20 in the mica and being welded to the leg 12 of the strap as at 28. Because the leg 12 is of a single thickness of material and it is the only element welded to the side rod 26, it is easy to weld the stop to the rod.

While a weld is the preferred means for securing the strap to the side rod, it is obvious that other means of attachment may be employed.

I claim as my invention:

1. A wafer-stop assembly comprising an insulating wafer with spaced apart openings therethrough, a resilient strap having one end curved against a first face of said wafer with the portion adjacent the curved end passing through one of said openings to the opposite second face of the wafer, the other end of said strap passing through the second of the openings from said second face of the wafer to and beyond the first face, the strap having an intermediate portion connecting the two ends of the strap, said intermediate portion being bowed, with the bow engaging the said second face of the wafer.

2. A grid stop assembly comprising an insulating wafer with spaced apart openings therethrough, a resilient strap having one end curved against a first face of said wafer with the portion adjacent the curved end passing through one of said openings to the opposite second face of the wafer, the other end of said strap passing through the second of the openings from said second face of the wafer to and beyond the first face, the strap having an intermediate portion connecting the two ends of the strap, said intermediate portion being bowed, with the bow engaging the second face of the wafer, and a grid provided with side rods having one side rod secured to said other end of the strap.

3. A grid stop assembly comprising an insulating wafer with spaced apart openings therethrough, a resilient strap having one end curved against a first face of said wafer with the portion adjacent the curved end passing through one of said openings to the opposite second face of the wafer, the other end of said strap passing through the second of the openings from said second face of the wafer to and beyond the first face, the strap having an intermediate portion connecting the two ends of the strap, said intermediate portion being bowed with the bow engaging the second face of the wafer and a grid provided with side rods with one side rod passing through the second opening and secured to said other end of the strap.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,870,943 Blakeman Aug. 9, 1932 1,966,523 Ronci July 17, 1934 2,075,761 Jackman Mar. 30, 1937 2,206,504 Kinyon July 2, 1940 2,324,367 Dailey July 13, 1943 OTHER REFERENCES Abstract, Ser. No. 22,347, published August 2, 1949. 

